Burst
by thedemonmatchmaker
Summary: On a train home after a long day of work, Lucy wants nothing more than to get her work done. It seems as if that was not going to happen, though, when a mysterious man with a sketchpad and a pencil sits down across from her. CoLu Oneshot (College AU)


**Author's Note** : Hi there! It's been awhile... I'm super sorry! Anyways, this is just a small, fluffy CoLu one shot to warm your hearts in this cold winter season! I hope you enjoy :)

* * *

 **Bursts**

 _Well this is life in motion (motion)_

 _And just when I couldn't run this race anymore_

 _The sun bursts, clouds break_

 _This is life in color, hey_

Lucy Heartfillia led a strange life. She was used to inexplicable events and random journeys. Between a pyromaniac best friend and an extremely aggressive redhead roommate, her world was ruled by spontaneity and recklessness. Years after meeting her friends, she still hadn't fully adjusted to their insanity.

But even for someone like the blond, there were certain lines she wasn't accustomed to crossing. Especially not on a train with a random stranger.

The girl arched her back, leaning on her seat as she looked out the window. The city was a blur from the window of her speeding train. The images of scenery filled her eyes, calming her down after a hectic day.

Even if she had been studying astronomy for the past years of her life, she had only landed a respectable job little over a month ago. She was still adjusting to her new lifestyle as a working adult. Nearly 25, she still felt like a child at times. She felt nostalgic about her college years, even if it meant going back to living on scraps and being broke 24/7. She loved her job and the apartment she shared with Erza, but there was something special and unique about being a student that she missed dearly.

The scientist was so distracted that she hardly noticed the motion in peripheral. She saw a figure slump into the seat across from here, pulling out some sort of book. She ignored it and continued to stare out the window, finding the consistency of motion and movement soothing for her aching brain.

Her field, she felt, was greatly underappreciated. The astronomy department at the university she worked for was terribly underfunded. Half of her day was spent trying to juggle their measly budget while the rest was used trying to work up to her fellow scholars' standards. Hating to feel like a disappointment to anyone, Lucy found herself working longer hours than anyone else, trying to catch up on their years of experience.

It's not because her coworkers were cruel or rude. Quite the opposite, in fact. They were all kind and obliging to her, helping her with her dumb questions. But because she was the sort of person to constantly push herself too far and strive for perfection, she felt an unnecessary weight on her shoulders. The stress was pushing her to work harder, but it was starting to burn her out. Bit by bit, she started losing whatever was left of her sanity after her friends destroyed the bulk.

Racking a hand through her long, knotted blond hair, she shifted around in her seat, impatient to get away from her own thoughts. Leaning forward, Lucy reached into her lace backpack, pulling out her phone. Plugging in her matching white headset, she leaned back once more, the calming effects of the classical music bringing her to a more peaceful state.

Closing her eyes, she let the music and the constant movement of the train soothe her. For the first time all day, she felt a bit of the stress she had hidden in her release. The train ride from the center of Crocus to the small town where she lived, named Magnolia, was a little over an hour long. She didn't mind the journey, in fact, it was the only point of the day where she was able to relax. It was nice and she had always enjoyed transportation, even if it made Natsu projectile vomit.

After a few minutes of relaxation, Lucy slowly pulled off her headset with a smile, ready to go back to work. She took out her pale blue reading glasses, gently cleaning them with her top. Stuffing her music in her bag, she searched for her notebook, where all her calculations were. Frowning, her eyes widened in fear. Had she left it back in her office?

Luckily, she found it tucked in between two other books. Grabbing it, she pulled a pencil out with it. She glanced at her latest notes, trying to refresh her memory before plunging back into her work.

For those first few seconds, she was so absorbed in her own thoughts that she barely heard the words come out of his mouth. Then, his words registered and her head shot up like a bullet.

" _Excuse me?_ " she asked, scandalized.

"I _said_ , why the fuck did you move? I was finally getting to the details!" he responded, sarcasm and outrage colouring his deep voice.

"Details of what?" she barked back, upset with this unwelcome distraction.

"This," he explained, shoving a beautiful charcoal sketch her way. Her eyes widened as in realization.

He had been drawing her the entire time.

Gingerly picking up the sketchpad, she examined the drawing in closer detail. With a sharp intake of breath, her eyes widened, unable to believe what was in front of her eyes. Sure enough, it was clearly her, staring out the train's window. Somehow, he made her look so real, so much so that it was as if Lucy was seeing her reflection in a mirror. Her hair was rumpled from the way she had been seated, her white shirt a bit crumpled. Her eyes were close, but her long eyelashes made her look like a sleeping beauty.

She was speechless. She could not believe that someone with so much talent would use her as a model. She was just...Lucy. Nothing special. Nothing worth such amazing art. She opened her mouth, prepared for accolades. But as she looked up, her words got stuck in her mouth, unable to come out.

The artist of the drawing was a piece of art himself.

His dark maroon hair spiked up in every direction, messy but perfect in its own way. His handsome face was accented by strong cheekbones as well as a sharp nose and jawline. He regarded her as if he could see the beauty in everything. She felt her heart skip a beat and told herself to calm down. So what if an attractive man just sat across from her and drew the most beautiful drawing of her she had ever seen.

No big deal, right?

Wrong.

He noticed the change in her behavior as he watched her inspect his art. Gone was the anxious, harsh girl. She seemed impressed with his art, which made him feel all shades of happy. He strived to improve his work, but failed miserably most of the time. Considering his job as a toxicologist gave him very little time to sketch portraits or pretty sceneries, he took advantage of this time to get in some hours. Normally, he would sketch an imaginary scene or place, but today, he felt inspired to drawing a living being. When he caught sight of her as he got on, he knew immediately that he wanted to draw her.

She was the perfect model. Her entire position was perfect, the way she looked out the window, the angle at which she sat. And her beauty. It was unlike anything he had ever seen in his entire existence. She was so gorgeous, it was as if she was from another world. Her blond hair caught the setting sun's light perfectly, reflecting it. The haze made it seem as if she were an angel, with a glowing halo around her head.

Like a star bursting, she was so bright it was difficult to stare right at her.

He continued gazing at her, his fingers moving, the rough lines slowly starting to form a beautiful angel. And now, that angel was looking critically at his work. Even though she seemed impressed, he couldn't help but feel a bit embarrassed. He wasn't one to feel ashamed of his work normally, but he tended to keep it secret. He would never live it down if his friends found out he loved to draw. They would tease him endlessly and he got used to hiding his passion for the arts.

When she looked up and they locked eyes, he felt a pang in his heart. Her brown eyes looked into his and he couldn't think of a single coherent thought. Just the sight of her made his brain turn to mush. He wanted to say something to break the growing silence, but kept his mouth shut in fear of becoming a babbling idiot.

She, too, seemed to be at a loss. Unable to think of anything else, she silently passed him back his art and nodded at him.

"Do you want to continue?" she mumbled, her timid voice barely audible over the buzz of the train.

Unable to do anything else, he nodded once, reaching down for his pencil. She turned back into the position she was in earlier, plugging in her music as she did so. A small smile creeped into her face and she blushed.

She was at a loss of words, something that rarely happened to the vocal Lucy Heartfillia. Never had someone looked at her the way he had. She didn't care if she knew nothing about him, not even his name. It's not like she was jumping into anything, but it was nice to feel beautiful and important for a few seconds. Without even realizing it, he had made her entire day brighter, like a burst of energy.

The two hid their smiles, happy to have the other's company but too shy to say anything else. For the next few minutes, Lucy sat, posed for her portrait, while he drew her. They individually enjoyed the company of the other. Whenever Lucy saw his face down in his sketchpad, she sneaked a look, closely examining every part of him. Even his smell was intoxicating.

He had a more legit reason to study her. When he had first sat down and started his sketch, he had been able to observe the young woman in secret, which had, admittedly, been harder and very creepy. But now, with her consent, he was able to draw her freely, letting his eyes examine every part of her beautiful face.

The train ride seemed to end very quickly after the two had eased into their happy silence. Both frowning, they started to gather their things as they approached the final stop, their station.

"Are you done?" Lucy questioned, her voice small yet polite. She tried to smile, but felt her face morph into a crazy-person grin and immediately tried to stop. Instead, it looked as if she had no control over her face and she hoped he hadn't noticed, blushing.

"Yes," he confirmed gruffly, slowly pulling the sheet off from his pad, careful as to not tear it. Instead of handing it to her, though, he kept it in his hands, holding it in a way to ensure he was smudging the drawing.

"My name is Erik, by the way. I'm a toxicologist over at University of Fiore in Crocus, but I live here in Magnolia. I'm sorry for being so creepy before, I just wanted to… um… practice drawing portraits." He fumbled on the last part of his introductions, fibbing a little. He didn't want to tell her that he thought she was more radiant than a bursting star. That might be coming on a bit strong considering they barely knew each other. He noticed the way her eyes widened as he told her his job. Probably because it was so odd.

"Greetings," she said, pausing for a second. Greetings? What the fuck was this, 1816? She made a face and wished she could go back and redo her introduction, but realizing it was pointless, she continued on as if nothing had happened. "My name is Lucy. I'm an astronomer at University of Fiore in Crocus, too. I also live here. And, I swear to God, I'm not following you."

He laughed a little, breezy laugh, his deep voice making her insides melt. He was so cute. And Erik? What an attractive name. She smiled at him. It was indeed an amazing coincidence that they worked in the same place. How had they not met before, she wondered?

"I usually take the earlier train," he explained, as if he could read her mind. "I had to stay a little later to finish up my work for the day."

"Oh, me too. I mean- I usually take this train but I had some work to finish, too." Ugh God, Lucy thought. I'm so awkward. Is there a hole where I could curl up, she thought, wanting to run away but not able to pull her eyes from the man standing up in front of her.

As he stood up, helping her collect her things, she noticed how he towered above her. In this close proximity, she could clearly smell the clean scent of his aftershave. She blushed as she realized she was literally sniffing a coworker. He seemed to notice this and smirked, making her turn an even deeper shade of red.

Leaning down, he quickly wrote something down on the backside of the sketch he had made of her. Standing up once more, he carefully handed her the drawing, not meeting her eyes as he did so.

Instead of looking at it right then and there, Lucy carefully slipped it into her bag to analyze in detail once she got home. She wanted to take her time to admire the beautiful piece of art. He looked up at her once more, grateful that she wasn't going to criticize his art in front of him.

As though they were one, they both started moving together, chatting as they got off the train and made their way out of the station. Once they arrived outside, a small breeze cooled them down. It was night by then, and the street lights were dark save the small lights from the streetlamps.

"May I walk you home?" Erik asked, his voice soft and vulnerable. He wanted to stay with her, but he was afraid she would reject him. He was well-aware they barely knew each other, but the man felt drawn to Lucy and wanted the opportunity to get to know the blond better.

"Of course," she responded with a bright smile. Like the gentleman he was, he offered her arm, which she took without hesitation, and together, the two smiled and laughed the whole way home, arms linked and hearts tied, their souls bright like a burst of light.


End file.
